Bluesky is a new social media app that has been in the works since 2019. The app aims to replace Twitter and address the concerns users have had with Twitter’s moderation policies. The project is being led by Twitter’s co-founder and former CEO, Jack Dorsey.
What is Bluesky?
Bluesky is designed to be a decentralized social media platform, which means that the content is stored across a network of computers rather than on a central server. This will help to make the platform more resilient to censorship and reduce the risk of a single entity having too much control over the content on the platform. Bluesky is built on top of an existing protocol called the InterPlanetary File System (IPFS). IPFS is a distributed file system that uses content-addressing to uniquely identify files and store them across a network of computers. This means that content on the Bluesky social app will be stored across multiple nodes, making it more difficult to censor.
Bluesky Social Beta
Bluesky is still in the early stages of development, and it is unclear when the app will be released. The development team is currently focusing on building a team of engineers and designers to work on the project. The team is also working on developing a set of standards for the platform that will govern how content is moderated and how users are able to interact with each other.
Open source
One of the key features of the Bluesky app is that it will be open source. This means that the code that powers the platform will be available for anyone to inspect and contribute to. This will help to make the platform more transparent and reduce the risk of hidden backdoors or other security vulnerabilities.
Privacy
Bluesky will also have a strong focus on privacy. The platform is looking to reestablish trust between social media platforms and the public. That’s why it’s using cryptography so that users can verify whether the content is authentic and created by other users.
Moderation
The platform has a composable moderation feature. This is one of the key features of the new social media platforms. It means that there is going to be a basic default moderation option, and users get the option to change it. This composable moderation means that decisions about how the platform is moderated and developed will be made by a community of users rather than a centralized authority. This will help to ensure that the platform remains true to its values and that users have a say in how it is run.
Concerns
Bluesky has the potential to be a game-changer in the world of social media. By addressing the concerns users have had with Twitter’s moderation policies and creating a more decentralized, open, and transparent platform, Bluesky social could attract a large user base. However, there are also some potential drawbacks to the platform. One concern is that the decentralized nature of the platform could make it more difficult to moderate content. With no centralized authority, it may be more difficult to remove content that is illegal or violates the platform’s standards.
Additionally, the open-source nature of the platform could make it more vulnerable to security vulnerabilities and other issues. Another concern is that the platform may struggle to attract users in the early stages of development. With no existing user base or network effect, it may be difficult to get users to switch from Twitter or other social media platforms to the Bluesky app. Additionally, the platform will need to overcome the challenge of creating a user-friendly interface that is accessible to a broad range of users.